Vehicle frame with built-in battery compartment



Oct. 17, 1967 R'. J. SCHROEDER 3,

VEHICLE FRAME WITH BUILT-IN BATTERY COMPARTMENT OriginalF iled Dec. 21,1964 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Oct. 17, 1967 R. J. SCHROEDER 3,

VEHICLE FRAME WITH BUILT-IN BATTERY COMPARTMENT 2 Sheets-$heet OriginalFiled Dec. 21, 1964 United States Patent Ollice 3,347,334 VEHICLE FRAMEWITH BUILT-IN BATTERY COMPARTMENT Robert J. Schroeder, Deerfield, Ill.,assignor to Allis- Chalmers Manufacturing Company, Milwaukee, Wis.Continuation of application Ser. No. 419,688, Dec. 21, 1964. Thisapplication Sept. 16, 1966, Ser. No. 580,130

6 Claims. (Cl. 180-685) This application is a continuation of mycopending application Serial No. 419,688 filed Dec. 21, 1964. p

This invention relates to a vehicle frame with a builtin batterycompartment and particularly to a battery compartment having wallsserving as reinforcement for the vehicle bumper or tool mounting plate.I Hertofore batteries for rubber tired motor vehicles have been placedat various points-on the vehicle. On some rubber tired loaders,'forinstance, the battery or batteries are placed in a compartment directlybehind the operators seat. A disadvantage of such positioning of thebattery is that maintenance personnel must climb up on the vehicle toinspect and service the battery. On other rubber tired loaders, thebattery has been positioned centrally on the vehicle and thus thebattery weight has not been used to full advantage as a counterweightfor the front mounted bucket.

It is an object of this invention to provide a battery compartment, theside walls of which serve as reinforcing structurefor a bumper or toolmounting plate.

It is a further object of this invention to provide a batterycompartment which is at the rear end of a material handling vehiclewhereby the battery serves effectively as counterweight for a tool atthe other end of the vehicle. I

It is a further object of this invention to provide a batterycompartment as hereinbefore outlined which is at the side of the vehicleat a height permitting inspection and servicing by maintenance personnelwithout. the necessity of their mounting the vehicle.

These and other objects and advantages of this invention will beapparent to those familiar with the art when the following descriptionis read in conjunction with the drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a side view of an articulated front end loader incorporatingthe present invention;

FIG. 2 is a top view of the rear frame of the loader shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a side view of the frame shown in FIG 2; and

FIG. 4 is a section view taken along the line IVIV in FIG. 3.

This invention is illustrated in a rubber tired articulated front endloader 11 having a material handling tool in the form of a front endbucket attachment 12. The loader has a front main frame 13 and rear mainframe 14 pivotally connected for articulation about a vertical pivotaxis 16. The rear main frame 14 supports the operators compartment 17and an engine 18 which drives at least the pair of rear Wheels 20through power transmitting means, not shown. As shown in FIGS. 2 and 4,the rear frame 14 includes a pair of longitudinally extending andtransversely spaced frame members 21, 22 which support the engine 18therebetween. The forward ends of frame members 21, 22 are rigidlyinterconnected by hinge components 23, 24, 25, 26. A bumper structure inthe form of a vertically disposed and transversely extending plate 31 isrigidly secured as by welding to the rear ends of the frame members 21,22 and as illustrated in FIGS. 2 and 4 the plate 31 extends transverselybeyond the frame members 21, 22 terminating in substantially verticallydisposed ends 32, 33. The portions of bumper 31 extending transverselyoutwardly beyond frame members 3,347,334 Patented Oct. 17, 1967 21, 22form vertically disposed rear Walls of battery receiving structureshereinafter described]. The transversely extending plate 31 may beemployed as a bumper or as a tool mounting plate.

A pair of combined bracing and battery receiving structures 36, 37rigidly interconnect and brace the plate 31 and the frame members 21, 22and are disposed rearwardly of the rear wheels 20. The batterycompartment structure 36 includes a vertically disposed andlongitudinally extending outer wall 38 and a transversely extendingvertical front wall 39 which are a part of a formed plate 40 secured atits rear end to the outer end 33- of plate 31 by Welding. The formedplate 40 has a bracing leg 41 secured as by welding to the transverselyout-ward facing vertical side wall 42 of frame member 21. The batterycompartment structure 36 also includes a bottom wall 43 rigidlyinterconnected by welding to the vertical bumper plate 31 and walls 38,39, 42. A battery 44 is positioned within the battery compartment formedby the structure 36, bumper 31 and Wall 42 and is releasably secured tothe bottom plate 43 in a conventional manner by means not shown. Aslanted roof cover 46 is pivotally mounted on the frame member 21 by ahinge 47 as shown inFIG. 4.

The battery compartment structure 37 is similarly made up of a bottomwall 53 and formed plate 50- which are identical to bottom wall 4-3 andplate 40 of battery compartment structure 36. A slanted roof top cover56 is secured to frame member 22 by a piano hinge 57 as shown in FIG. 4.The longitudinally extending vertical portion 58 of formed plate 50provides an outer wall of the battery compartment structure 37 and suchportion is secured by welding to the vertically disposed end 32 of plate31. Wall portion 59 of the formed plate 5t) serves as a vertical frontwall of the battery compartment structure 37. The bottom wall plate 53is Welded to bumper plate 31 and walls 58, 59 of formed plate 50 andalso to the transversely outward facing vertical side wall 61 of framemember 22. Formed plate 50 has a forwardly extending bracing leg 62which is secured by welding to the frame member 22.

A battery 64 equal in size to battery 44 is positioned in the batterycompartment structure 37 and is releasably fastened to the bottom plate53 by mounting means not shown. By positioning the batteries 44, 64 atthe rear of the vehicle their weight is most advantageously used ascounterbalance weight, which is particularly needed in material handlingvehicles such as a front end loader in which the present invention isillustrated. The batteries may weigh pounds each or more and thus thecost of providing counterweight material of 2.60 pounds or more iseliminated. Additionally the positioning of the batteries in closeproximity to the engine 18 reduces the length of electric lines to theengine with attendant reduced cost and power loss. The covers of thebattery compartment are between waist and chest height and thus are at aconvenient height for personnel checking and servicing the batteries 44,64. Further the batteries are not hidden within the vehicle where theywould be less accessible, nor are they so positioned that vehicleattachments would hinder their replacement or servicing.

The embodiments of the invention for which an exclusive property orprivilege is claimed are defined as follows:

1. In a vehicle of the type having a material handling tool at its frontend and an engine near its rear end the combination comprising:

a pair of longitudinally extending and transversely spaced frame memberssupporting said engine therebetween and having transversely outwardfacing vertical side walls, respectively,

a vertically disposed and transversely extending plate is rigidlysecured to the rear ends of said frame members, respectively, and havingends extending beyond said frame members, and

a combined bracing and battery receiving structure rigidlyinterconnecting said plate and one of said frame members including avertically disposed and longitudinally extending outer wall rigidlysecured to one end of said plate and disposed in transversely outwardlyspaced relation to the side wall of said one of said frame members,

a transversely extending vertical front wall rigidly interconnectingsaid outer wall and side wall, and

a bottom wall rigidly interconnecting at least said side and outerwalls, said walls and plate defining an upward opening batterycompartment.

2. The structure set forth in claim 1 wherein said plate is a rearbumper for said vehicle.

3. The structure set forth in claim 2 and further comprising a cover forsaid battery compartment pivotally connected to said one frame member.

4. In a vehicle of the type having a material handling tool at its frontend and an engine near its rear end the combination comprising:

a pair of longitudinally extending and transversely spaced frame memberssupporting said engine therebetween and having transversely outwardfacing vertical side walls, respectively,

a vertically disposed and transversely extending plate rigidly securedto the rear ends of said frame members, respectively, and extendingtransversely therebeyond, terminating in substantially verticallydisposed ends,

combined bracing and battery receiving structures rigidlyinterconnecting said plate and said frame members including verticallydisposed and longitudinally extending outer walls rigidly secured tosaid vertically disposed ends, respectively, and disposed intransversely outwardly spaced relation to said side walls, respectively,

substantially vertical front walls rigidly interconnecting said outerwalls, respectively, and said side walls, respectively, and

bottom walls rigidly interconnecting at least said side 4- and outerwalls, said walls and plate defining a pair of upward opening batterycompartments, and cover means for said battery compartments.

5. The structure set forth in claim 4 wherein said plate is a rearbumper for said vehicle.

6. In a vehicle of the type having a pair of rear wheels,

a material handling tool at its front end and an engine near its rearend the combination comprising:

a pair of longitudinally extending and transversely spaced frame memberssupporting said engine therebetween and having transversely outwardfacing vertical side walls, respectively,

a bumper structure rigidly secured to the rear ends of said framemembers, respectively, and

a battery receiving structure disposed substantially rearwardly of oneof said rear wheels including a vertically disposed rear wall extendingtransversely outwardly from one of said frame members substantially incontinuation of said bumper structure,

a vertically disposed and longitudinally extending outer wall rigidlysecured to said rear wall and disposed in transversely outwardly spacedrelation to the side wall of said one of said frame members,

a substantially vertical front wall rigidly interconnecting said outerwall and side wall, and

a bottom wall rigidly interconnecting at least said side and outerwalls, said walls defining an upward opening battery compartment.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,038,615 9/1912 MacRae 180-52 X1,067,256 7/1913 Kennedy 180-65 2,700,572 1/ 1955 Torrance 29637.22,876,857 3/1959 Beterstedt 18068.5 X

FOREIGN PATENTS 1,285,557 1/1962 France.

630,876 6/1936 Germany.

182,633 7/1922 Great Britain.

BENJAMIN HERSH, Primary Examiner.

M. L. SMITH, Examiner.

1. IN A VEHICLE OF THE TYPE HAVING A MATERIAL HANDLING TOOL AT ITS FRONTEND AND AN ENGINE NEAR ITS REAR END THE COMBINATION COMPRISING: A PAIROF LONGITUDINAL EXTENDING AND TRANSVERSELY SPACED FRAME MEMBERSSUPPORTING SAID ENGINE THEREBETWEEN AND HAVING TRANSVERSELY OUTWARDFACING VERTICAL SIDE WALLS, RESPECTIVELY, A VERTICALLY DISPOSED ANDTRANSVERSELY EXTENDING PLATE RIGIDLY SECURED TO THE REAR ENDS OF SAIDFRAME MEMBERS, RESPECTIVELY, AND HAVING ENDS EXTENDING BEYOND SAID FRAMEMEMBERS, AND A COMBINED BRACING BATTERY RECEIVING STRUCTURE RIGIDLYINTERCONNECTING SAID PLATE AND ONE OF SAID FRAME MEMBERS INCLUDING